Rotary Club and SoPo team up for WinterFest

The South Portland/Cape Elizabeth Rotary Club, in partnership with the city of South Portland, will present the eighth annual WinterFest celebration on Feb. 1.

The signature event features free family outdoor activities designed to promote healthy winter recreation at city facilities. South Portland’s Parks and Recreation Department is providing the facilities and organizing the events.

On Saturday, Feb. 1, there will be activities at Wainwright Field, Mill Creek Pond, Hinkley Park and the South Portland Golf Course with many events for children and adults alike.

Wainwright Field will include a cardboard sledding contest, a sledding hill, horse-drawn wagon rides, Touch the Trucks, ice skating and outdoor games. There will also be fireworks and commercial food trucks to feed the crowds.

Mill Creek Pond will have open skating most of the day and an opportunity to play hockey with the South Portland High School team.

Hinkley Park has a pond where there will be ice fishing demos. Kids are encouraged to participate in an ice fishing derby (preregistration required).

The South Portland Golf Course will have a Children’s Story Walk, snowshoeing, geocaching and dog sled rides.

Many local businesses will be sponsoring these events. Any proceeds will be used by Rotary to help feed the hungry, assist Maine’s homeless veterans, provide scholarships, sponsor youth leadership training, and many other charitable projects in our local communities.

For more specific information on the various events and their timing, visit www.sopoparksrec.com or Facebook.com/southportlandwinterfest.

The South Portland/Cape Elizabeth Rotary Club was founded in 1962. For more information about the club or to inquire about membership, contact president David Lourie at dalourie@maine.rr.com or visit www.sp-ce-rotary.org.

SoPo seeks conservation commission members

The South Portland Conservation Commission has two vacancies to fill. The commission is an all-volunteer board appointed by the city council to “… serve as a research, advisory and advocacy group on environmental and conservation issues relating to the city.”

Some knowledge of and interest in conservation issues such as public open space, water resource and air quality protection, and wildlife habitat are important. Those interested in an appointment to the commission, should visit go the city of South Portland website, select the Government tab, then Boards and Committees. The word application is highlighted. For some background on duties, scroll down under Boards and Committees and select Conservation Commission.

Library hosts Wildlife and Ecology Lecture Series

South Portland Public Library’s next presentation of the Wildlife and Ecology Lecture Series, Bats! Friends of the Night Sky, is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 23 at the Main Library. The lecture will be presented by the Center for Wildlife.

There are over 1,500 species of bats in the world, each helping to balance the ecosystem in which they live. Learn about these gentle creatures, including Maine’s own big brown bat, with the Center for Wildlife. The series will uncover their natural history, importance to the ecosystem and planet, the current challenges bats face, as well as tangible actions for protecting these allies in the night.

For more information about the Wildlife and Ecology Lecture Series, call circulation at 767-7660, ext. 2.

Business owner becomes partner/owner at Regency Realty Group

Jen Allen, who has served the local community as a partner in The Study Hall, in Scarborough, expanded her horizons by becoming a two-business owner this past week. She joins Terry Bragdon Fletcher and Matthew Chamberlain as the third owner of Regency Realty Group, in South Portland.

Allen has made serving southern Maine her life’s, and businesses’ priority. When asked why real estate and education, she said, “Educating buyers and sellers is very similar to working with students in the classroom. I find helping others make informed decisions extremely rewarding.”

First Congregational to host concert

First Congregational Church in South Portland will host the Don Roy Trio on Feb. 9. The concert is the second performance in Meetinghouse Concerts’ 2019-2020 series. The Trio features Don Roy, Cindy Roy, and Jay Young on fiddle, piano, and bass, respectively.

Don Roy is firmly rooted in the FrancoAmerican musical tradition. They have played at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, appeared with Garrison Keillor. Cindy and Don received a National Heritage Fellowship in 2018 – the nation’s highest honor in the folk and traditional arts – recognizing their artistic excellence and supporting their continuing contributions of the nnation’s traditional arts heritage.

The trio will be joined by three fiddling siblings from Otisfield: Rossby (14), Elsie (12) and Oliver (10) Arnott, who were special guests at the 2017-2019 Fiddle-icious concerts.

The concert will begin at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 9. First Congregational Church is located at 301 Cottage Road in South Portland.

Ticket are $12 in advance, $15 at the door; children 16 and under half price. Available at BrownPaperTickets.com, Nonesuch Books and the church office.

For more information, call Elinor Redmond at 650-8579 or email eredmond@maine.rr.com.

SMCC announces fall semester dean’s list

Southern Maine Community College announced that nearly 1,300 students have made the 2019 fall semester dean’s list.

They include:

Cape Elizabeth: Deborah Allen, Samantha Bengs, Mary Boyle, Brandon Bursley, Adam Collins, Ryan Connolly, Anika Cook, Joy Drzewiecki, Brady Eavenson, Erika Gildard, Alex Goodwin, Anna Hayes, Rachael Herst, Nathanael Lavallee, Abigail McFarland, David Plummer, Michael Redman, Dana Schauf, Lauren Soucy, Ella Trout, Andrew Whynot, Matthew Yim.

Scarborough: Ian Allard, Sean Arsenault, Erika Berry, Sabrina Blackie, Adam Brown, Romee Caron, Zachary Carriero, Melodie Coates, Leah De Cesare, Nicholas DeGrinney, Casey Dillon, Jillian Gagnon, Nicholas Giroux, Robert Gondolfo, Juan Gonzalez, Arden Goodwin, Marissa Hanna, Kathleen Hodge, James Kacer, Jeremiah Karass, Nathaniel Kinney, Elizabeth Kohler, Lindsey Ladd, Pu Luu, Vanessa Mathews, Suzanne McLaughlin, Emily McNally, Andrea Mendoza, Embry O’Leary, Amira Oul, McKenzie Richard, Sarah Rose, Christine Small, Alison Smith, Olivia Tapley, Kamala Thorp, Matthew Toohey, Meredith Treat, Alexandra Twomey, Theoharis Vocal, Katelyn Willis, Ryan Woodward.

South Portland: Noor Al Dulaimi, Ali Alhameedi, Lindsey Ayre, Caleb Balser, Curtis Begin, Fredor Bihizi, Damian Blanchard-McIntosh, Vanessa Bodman, Amanda Bouchard, Carolyn Breau, Jessamyn Brewer, Christopher Brown, Jordan Burnell, Paul Campos, Nicole Caston-Waly, Jerry Chann, Abigail Chase, Suwigya Chaudhary, Natalie Cliff, Jamie Cobb, Elizabeth Collins, Cody Corbett, Thomas Cornelison, Randall Delaware, Alexander Diaz, James DiBiase, Melissa DuBois, Charles Elwell, Mariana Fernandez, Melody Fish, Madigan Fitzgerald, Christopher Foulke, Kaelyn Galipeau, Cassidy Gonneville, Kaitlyn Gonneville, Sara Groshens, Thomas Guignard, Taylor Gustin, Jacob Hackett, Eliza Hellier, Aisha Hill, Jill Hutchison, Alain Icoyitungiye, Gladys Irakoze, Nana Kanjinga, Olivia Kierstead, Santana King, Molly Lara, Jason Lesaldo, Ai Ling Li, Julienne Loeber, Dilyse Lorello, Maureen Lorello, Ian Lukas, Heather Lundin, Lauren Lusardi, Adam Mangiafico, Wendy Manning, Tanya Martin, Tatianna Matos, Patrick McCartan, Noah McHugh, Isabella McMullan, Lydia McMullan, Aliaksandra Meta, Aleksandra Milinovic, Linda Muhimpundu, Gabriel Muir, Michelle Muniz, Darien Nappi, Margaret Nason, Simon Neufeld, Adam Neveu, Ernest Nijimbere, Callie O’Brien, Maryssa O’Neil, Danny Olembo, Rachel Parent, Makennah Pelletier, Jacob Poole, Fazel Qaney, Heliane Quiteke, William Ramos, Caryan Reid-Ulysse, Jesse Reynolds, Justin Saulle, Ingrid Silver, Mathew Silvius-I’Aboni, Jeffrey Sirois, Delphinia Skinner, Katherine Snyder, Ruby Stanton, Bienvenu Suka, Stephanie Taylor, Kevin Thompson, Amy Tran, Ngoc Tran, Thuy Truong, Samuel Ufitikirezi, Fatuma Uwimana, Alexa Ward, Kaylee Whitten, Tianna Wilcox, Elliot Yates, Courtney Yount, Rebekah Zellers, Emily Zografos.

Church plans bean supper

Peoples United Methodist Church will host a bean supper 5 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 18. The church is located at 310 Broadway in South Portland.

The supper menu includes homemade casseroles, baked beans, salads and pies. The venue is handicapped accessible. For more information, call 767-3572 or email doreentgay@gmail.com.

Tri City Chorus seeks singers

The Tri City Community Chorus invites any singers interested in joining, to an orientation on Monday evening, Jan. 20 between 6 and 8 p.m. It will be at the Masonic Hall, third floor of the Saco & Biddeford Savings Institution, 252 Main St., Saco. Entrance and parking in the rear. Rehearsals are Monday nights from 6:45 to 9 p.m.  beginning Jan. 27 until the spring concert on June 6.

To schedule an appointment or for more information, call director Wesley Raines at 475-7582 or email wmraines@comcast.net.

Sen. Millett returns to Augusta for new legislative session

Sen. Rebecca Millett, D-Cape Elizabeth, returned to Augusta on last week for the start of the second regular session of the 129th Legislature. After hearing from constituents, Sen. Millett plans to continue to focus on ensuring children in Maine have access to a great education, expanding access to affordable health care, and tackling the climate crisis.

“We had a very successful first session, making progress on many key issues,” said Sen. Millett. “Our work is never done, however, and I look forward to continuing to take on the issues that affect Mainers now and will affect our future generations.”

During the second session, lawmakers will consider governor’s bills, carry-over bills and other bills deemed emergency in nature as outlined by the Maine Constitution. All new bills submitted for consideration must be approved by the bipartisan Legislative Council, which comprises legislative leadership in both the House and Senate. The statutory date of adjournment for the shorter second session is April 15.

Sen. Millett has introduced the following bills in the new legislative session:

· LD 1984, “An Act to Eliminate Waiting Lists for Home and Community-based Services for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities, Autism, Brain Injury and Other Related Conditions.”

· LD 1915, “Resolve, Directing the Department of Environmental Protection to Evaluate Emissions from Heated Aboveground Petroleum Storage Tanks.”

· LD 1988, “An Act to Prohibit the Distribution of Deceptive Images or Audio or Video Recordings with the Intent to Influence the Outcome of an Election.”

· LD 1914, “An Act to Provide a Sales Tax Exemption for Textbooks.”

· LR 3126, “An Act to Remove from the Calculation of the Cost of Education the Maine Public Employees Retirement System State Employee and Teacher Plan Unfunded Actuarial Liability.”

· LR 2675, “An Act to Enact Restrictions on Electronic Smoking Devices.”

Sen. Millett is serving her fourth term in the Senate. She serves as the Senate chair of the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee.

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